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Technology Stocks : The *NEW* Frank Coluccio Technology Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (10322)	6/19/2005 10:09:55 PM
From: ftth	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 46821

I wonder what percent of homes are served by underground electric...any idea? Guess they could still use street lights. Either that, or when they revamp the ageing water distribution network, put the new water network on poles ;o)

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (10322)	6/19/2005 10:55:08 PM
From: axial	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 46821

Hi, Frank - I think we are interpreting the Earthlink piece differently. "But to answer one of your questions about the relationship between WiFi and WiMAX, I've always seen the former depending on the latter for meshing between cells that were outside the reach of WiFi alond, and for backhaul purposes, and someday being coexistent with one another, where handoffs and roaming are concerned. But I think some snags must be ironed out first within the standards bodies before such attributes associated with coexistence could be guaranteed." I've never bought into the "Wimax is for backhaul" statements. This is a position articulated by Cisco last year, Intel more recently. It's certainly true that many can use a cheaper form of backhaul. However, if one looks at statements by other WiMax proponents, this is not the only view of how WiMax will evolve. Samsung and Wi-Bro, for example. I understand the commercial considerations behind artificially prolonging the life of Wi-Fi, but fail to see the technological ones. If WiMax follows the typical curve for equipment costs after it gets into production (and at first blush, it looks like WiMax will start much more strongly than Wi-Fi did) component costs should start to fall, and continue falling. If one accepts that historical truism, then at some point there should be price parity between WiMax and Wi-Fi (which is really 2.4 GHz 802.11b with a lot of cosmetic surgery.) At the point of price parity, given the inherent advantages of WiMax, why would one purchase Wi-Fi? In the home, for a WISP, or a MuniNet? (An interesting side-point here is that many vendors have seen a pre-WiMax falloff in sales, as potential customers delayed the purchase decision in order to see what would emerge from WiMax.) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On your next point, we're completely in agreement... "In any event, given WiFi's potential for congestion, compounded by its lower speeds than those of CM and emerging forms of VDSL2/ADSL2 and other forms FTTP, and its perceived problems with security (real or imagined), in general, I don't think you'll see it used as the main source of broadband access by many users where they have other options to select from that are faster, more "dedicated," and perceived to be more secure. Instead, in my view citywide wireless networks will be used by anyone on the move if and when they have a need in addition to their main for of access at home, but it will serve as a main source of access only by the most price sensitive users and/or in grossly un-served areas. For FIXED residential and SMB applications, Cable Modem, DSL and future FTTP access methods - with each of these potentially complemented with in-residence WiFi or some other form wireless - will present a higher value proposition than Wireless for the reasons mentioned above, except where mobility and other reasons having to do with convenience of use are required." Yes. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I think there are undercurrents here, Frank. Perhaps a cautious view of WiMax's future is justified. Perhaps Wi-Fi has "legs". IMO at 5 GHz and 2.4 Ghz, unlicensed, or at any other frequency, 802.16 (plus) - OFDM - gives you more bang for an eventual equivalent buck.

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (10322)	6/20/2005 3:39:26 AM
From: tech101	Respond to of 46821

AT&T to Test Wireless Broadband In a Large-Scale Trial This Fall By SARMAD ALI Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL June 20, 2005; Page B4 AT&T Corp. is launching a large-scale commercial trial of new wireless-broadband technology in Georgia this fall, the latest large telephone company to kick off such a trial in recent months. The company plans to start offering the service to corporate customers after the trial ends next year. The technology, an early version of WiMAX, provides wireless connections to the Internet at speeds comparable to high-speed wired connections. AT&T earlier this year conducted smaller trials of the technology in laboratories and in small communities in New Jersey and Alaska. BellSouth Corp. recently said it plans a trial of a similar wireless-broadband service. Phone companies and other telecommunications companies are interested in wireless-broadband technology because it could offer a cheaper alternative to traditional high-speed Internet service, which is delivered via phone, fiber or cable networks that are expensive to maintain and roll out. New wireless-broadband technology also could allow phone companies to offer high-speed Internet service in places were traditional networks are hard or extremely costly to install, such as in remote areas. Analysts say WiMAX technology, which isn't yet certified as an industry standard, might have better opportunities overseas, especially in developing countries and Asia. "It is a disruptive technology that will allow you to get all services with better reliability and mobility and at better cost," said Hossein Eslambolchi, chief technology officer of AT&T. For the Georgia trial, AT&T is in the process of building four transmission towers: one in downtown Atlanta and three others in Alpharetta, a community north of Atlanta. AT&T hopes to enlist roughly 30 large corporate customers for the trial. WiMAX is expected to be capable of transferring large amounts of information and data over several miles at broadband speeds. This technology has the potential of dramatically changing wireless communications, by allowing providers to offer many services such as Internet calling, video, chatting and Internet simultaneously over a highly secure wireless connection. AT&T is planning to use a chip set manufactured by Intel Corp., which has been one of WiMAX's biggest boosters. Write to Sarmad Ali at sarmad.ali@wsj.com

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (10322)	6/20/2005 8:47:34 AM
From: Peter Ecclesine	Respond to of 46821

Hi, Run VoIP through your wireless LAN By Greg Chesson, Atheros Communications Inc. 08 Jun 2005, Wireless Net DesignLine eetasia.com Technology companies have created WiFi-based phone systems serving niche markets for several years. Early products were introduced with 802.11b-only wireless subsystems having maximum phone capacity of about five voice calls. These systems often used proprietary signaling and QoS techniques. The wireless phone links wouldn't have been secure, and there wouldn't have been sufficient bandwidth to service data applications and phones simultaneously by current expectations. Ongoing improvements in 802.11 technology—high-rate PHYs, WPA security, and QoS methods—promise to bring Voice-over-IP (VoIP), VoIP-plus-data, video-plus-data, and VoIP-plus-video-plus-data applications into the mainstream. The growth of VoIP service providers, small and large, suggests business opportunities for applying 802.11 technology to VoIP, or for providing VoIP service over 802.11. Unfortunately, there are no standard practices for providing VoIP/802.11 service. There are high-level problems to resolve such as billing, call processing, and secure rapid handoff between systems. There are 802.11-level problems to resolve, such as how to support both VoIP and data on the same wireless channel while also optimizing handset battery life. Continues at eetasia.com

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (10322)	8/30/2005 10:01:44 PM
From: axial	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 46821

Whiz-Bang Wireless At The Scene Of A Crime Aug. 25, 2005 New mesh-networking software from PacketHop lets police and first responders use their mobile devices to set up wireless networks that don't require Wi-Fi access points or routers. By Elena Malykhina InformationWeek Every minute counts when police officers and first responders are caught in a dangerous situation that requires teamwork and fast communication. And increasingly, they're being equipped with laptops, pocket PCs, and PDAs that let them communicate wirelessly. But they can't always use these systems, since Wi-Fi access points or other wireless infrastructures aren't necessarily available at the scene of an incident. Cont'd at informationweek.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Start-Up Builds Wireless Mesh Net August 29, 2005 10:32AM With PacketHop's TrueMesh software, users of Windows XP laptops and tablets can create an instant wireless network that dynamically routes data among the computers forming the mesh. It's as if each wireless device incorporated its own wireless LAN access point. Cont'd at newsfactor.com